TUESDAY NEWS SUPPLEMENT 11/8: Jones says he thought he was taking Cialis and it ended up being a tainted version of another drug (w/Hiscoe’s Analysis)

By Michael Hiscoe, MMATorch contributor

DETAILS ON JONES’S DEFENSE AGAINST BANNED SUBSTANCE SUSPENSION

Jon Jones looked for answers, and spent considerable time and money in arbitration, but in the end he still received the maximum penalty for his drug test failure prior to UFC 200.

The former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion has been served with a one-year suspension, retroactive to July 6, 2017 due to the banned substances clomiphene and letrozole appearing in a June 16, 2016 urine test. A report on the findings released Monday gives a detailed account of how the substances ended up in Jones’s system.

Jones claimed during a June 14, 2016 dinner with teammate Eric Blasich that he was offered what he thought was a Cialis pill. Jones admitted that he had used Viagra in the past, and had assumed that Cialis was an identical product, which it is not. Jones accepted and used the pill that night, but he wasn’t aware that the pill he took wasn’t Cialis but was a Tadalafil pill, the active ingredient in Cialis, purchased from a website All American Peptide.

The pill was found by USADA to be contaminated with the substances in question. Pills from the same package Jones used were tested and packages obtained independently by USADA from the same website were tested and came back positive as well. Jones had failed to disclose the use of Cialis or Tadalafil when asked on the form he filled out when being tested.

In arbitration, Jones attempted to cite recent precedents of Yoel Romero and Tim Means receiving shortened suspensions for the use of tainted supplements. The arbitration panel did not accept this argument as in the cases of Romero and Means, they were common supplements purchased from traditional outlets and they were not labelled with the banned substances. When taking the Tadalafil, Jones didn’t attempt to verify the validity of what he thought was Cialis, nor confirm that it was allowed under USADA regulations, nor disclose it on his testing forms.

The All American Peptides website is currently “down for maintenance.”

UFC released a statement Monday, saying “UFC is aware of the one-year sanction levied against Jon Jones as a result of his UFC Anti-Doping Policy violation, decided by a three-person arbitration panel held on Monday, Oct. 31, 2016. UFC has been advised that the one-year suspension commenced on Wednesday, July 6, 2016. While the decision indicates no evidence of Jones’s intentional use of banned substances, it does highlight the care and diligence that is required by athletes competing in the UFC to ensure that no prohibited substances enter their system.”

Jones followed with a statement of his own. “Although I was hopeful for a better outcome in the USADA ruling today, I am very respectful of the process in which they allowed me to defend myself,” he said. “I have always maintained my innocence and I am very happy I have been cleared in any wrongdoing pursuant to the allegations made that I had intentionally taken a banned substance. I am pleased that in USADA’s investigation they determined I was ‘not a cheater of the sport.’ Being cleared of these allegations was very important to me. I have worked hard in and outside of the Octagon to regain my image and my fighting career and will take these next eight months to continue my training and personal growth both as a man and a athlete. Thank you to all of my fans, teammates, coaches, sponsors, and to the UFC for their continued support.”

Jones will be eligible to fight again on July 7, 2017. UFC traditionally holds a big show in Las Vegas after the 4th of July. The 2017 edition would likely fall on July 8.

Hiscoe’s Analysis: After reading the report, it does seem plausible enough that Jones took the Tadalafil pill and that it was legitimately contaminated with Clomiphene and Letrozole. Why a 28 year old, athletically gifted man would need to take a sexual enhancement pill is another question. Past use has to be considered as a possibility based on the eyeball test and some testosterone levels that leaked out last year. That said, I think the punishment is fair and hopefully he can keep his nose clean and come back to fighting and stay back this time without any more prolonged absences as we have been getting recently. When Jones returns next year, he will have only fought three times in a span slightly longer than three years. What Jones has done in the cage can’t be taken back or denied, but the story of Jon Jones will truly be written over what he does from here on out.

TUESDAY NOTEBOOK ITEMS…

-Jon Jones will finally get to compete with Dan Henderson when they meet in a submission grappling match at Submission Underground 2 on Dec. 11. The show will air on FloCombat.com. Chael Sonnen made the announcement on yesterday’s edition of The MMA Hour.

-MMAJunkie obtained documentation that indicates the Professional Fighters Association has goals to increase base pay to $25,000 to show and another $25,000 to win, full health insurance for fighters and their families, a pension plan that would kick in after twenty UFC fights, revenue sharing of TV rights fees, matchmaking based on independent fighter rankings, and more.

-Bellator has signed Nebrasky Kearny University wrestler Romero Cotton to a fight contract. He plans on fighting in 2017 at 185 pounds. Cotton is the latest in a string of wrestling prospects Bellator has signed on before the start of their professional careers. “I’m honored to be the latest and there’s nothing I’m looking forward to more than showing the world my skills that I’ve acquired throughout my life not only as a wrestler, but as an athlete,” Cotton said in a release,

(MMATorch’s Daily News Digest features the top story of the day with added analysis, plus smaller tidbits in the News Notes section. Mike Hiscoe, who writes the News Digest Sundays through Thursdays, has a background in film criticism and previously wrote for the DVD Town and Movie Metropolis websites. His passion for Mixed Martial Arts goes back to 2005, but it was in the promotion for UFC 60: Hughes vs. Gracie that he really got hooked.”This is my house, I build it,” is still among the all-time great UFC promos. You can follow Mike on social media under the tag @mikehiscoe. He now provides his experienced writing and perspective on live MMA events for MMATorch.)